Madison County

Madison County prices in at a median of $187,876 with median rent of $1,113, producing a rent-to-price ratio of 0.71% monthly, or roughly 8.5% annualized. That sits comfortably above the threshold most investors use to screen for cash-flow viability, and the model cap rate of 4.62% confirms the income yield is real. Year-over-year home price appreciation of 2.9% is modest but positive, which means Madison isn't a pure cash-flow play sacrificing all upside, nor is it a hot appreciation market where yield gets crushed by price. The affordability index of 90 and the overall score of 72 placing Madison in the 86th national percentile out of 1,000 counties tell a consistent story: this is a modestly priced, income-leaning market with a secondary appreciation component.

The cash-flow score of 71 and appreciation score of 79 together suggest Madison skews toward appreciation relative to what you'd expect from a county at this price point, but the raw underwriting numbers deserve honest scrutiny. At a 6.85% interest rate with 20% down, the model throws off negative $261 per month in cash flow and a cash-on-cash return of -7.25%. That's a real number, and it reflects the current rate environment rather than any structural problem with the market. An investor putting more equity in, buying below median, or finding value-add units at a discount to the stabilized median will shift those numbers materially. This market suits a value-add operator or a patient appreciation buyer more than a pure cash-flow buyer underwriting at current financing costs. Someone hunting for turnkey cash flow at today's rates will find this market does not pencil without either below-market acquisition or creative financing.

The affordability index of 90, combined with a population of 130,545, indicates a real tenant base that can afford rents at the median level without extreme rent burden. Markets with this profile tend to see sticky occupancy because renters can sustain payments without being squeezed out, and the price point keeps investor competition from institutional capital lower than in higher-priced metros. The stability score of 50 is the one flag worth sitting with. It signals meaningful volatility risk, whether in employment, population trends, or income consistency, and it should push any buyer toward stress-testing vacancy and rent assumptions rather than underwriting to best-case occupancy.

On carry costs, the combined monthly tax and insurance estimate runs $177, using an 0.85% state-average effective property tax rate and an 0.28% insurance rate. That $177 figure is already baked into the $390 estimated monthly expenses in the model, so it isn't a surprise number, but it's worth isolating because tax and insurance together represent roughly 45% of non-mortgage monthly costs at this price point. The 0.85% property tax rate is flagged as normal relative to Indiana's state average, which is a genuine tailwind compared to high-tax states where equivalent income properties carry significantly heavier tax loads. Treat the 0.85% as a reasonable planning assumption, but pull actual county and township assessor data before closing because rates can vary meaningfully below that state-average estimate.

The stability score of 50 is the primary risk flag the data surfaces. A county of 130,545 people that scores that low on stability warrants due diligence on employer concentration and population trajectory. If the local economy leans heavily on a single sector or employer, a contraction there flows directly into vacancy and rent softness. The data does not provide specific economic anchors here, so that employment concentration question needs to be answered through your own local research before committing capital. Regulatory risk is not flagged in the data, and vacancy or crime figures are not provided, so no conclusions can be drawn there.

Compared to the neighboring counties in the dataset, Madison stands out on price accessibility and yield. Howard County is nearly identical in price ($185,850 vs. $187,876) but delivers a lower rent-to-price ratio of 0.649% monthly versus Madison's 0.711%, which compounds across a portfolio. Both counties share the same overall score of 72, meaning Madison's income edge comes without sacrificing composite quality. Lagrange County at $322,425 and Whitley County at $272,520 are priced significantly higher, which means they require more capital deployed per door and likely compress yield further. Orange County at $182,101 is slightly cheaper but carries a higher overall score of 73 with no rent data provided to verify whether its income dynamics justify the score. Jefferson County at $231,468 and a score of 71 offers no obvious advantage over Madison at a meaningfully higher price. The case for choosing Madison over its neighbors comes down to the rent-to-price ratio being the highest among the counties where rent data exists, at a price point accessible enough that even a modest value-add play leaves room to manufacture equity without overextending basis.